I had the pleasure of interviewing Tim Ryan a few years ago for my book The California Golden Seals: a Tale of White Skates, Red Ink, and One of the NHL’s Most Outlandish Teams. I found him to be a great interview with lots of great stories about working for the Seals in the late sixties. I was also happy to be able to speak to such an important sports media figure, and that is truly what Tim Ryan is; while I asked him to talk only about his experiences in hockey, his life and career go far beyond the Great White North’s favourite sport. In the end, I learned so much more about the man I had interviewed, and I had absolutely no idea what a fascinating life he has led.

Tim Ryan grew up in Canada, and began his professional broadcasting career in Toronto, but he has spent much of his career down south. His big break came when the California Seals were getting ready to enter the NHL. He joined the Seals’ public relations department at the team’s entry into the NHL, and he also did the play-by-play for many of the Seals’ early NHL games. He does not go into much detail about his time with the Seals, which is unfortunate, as I’m always looking for new stories about the Seals, but I also understand it is impossible to write a book about one’s whole life without talking about the 98% of one’s career that occurred afterward, especially when it involves personal stories about Muhammad Ali, John McEnroe, Billie Jean King, Donald Trump, and Katarina Witt, among others.

One of the main themes of this book is being able to travel and experience life “on someone’s else’s nickel”, a phrase he uses often in describing each phase of his lengthy career. Broadcasting is an incredibly interesting and fulfilling career choice, especially if you can make your way to the big league’s, i.e. the CBSes, the NBCs, and ESPNs of the world, for they are never shy about spending the big bucks to keep their announcing crew happy and comfortable. Plus, you get to meet all sorts of celebrities and world-class athletes on an almost daily basis, so the perks are pretty sweet.

I especially enjoyed Ryan’s take on how NFL coaches talk to the media. Ryan writes about his favourite coaches to interview as well as those who were the hardest to get a quote from. Mike Holmgren was among his favourites, while on the other hand, Chuck Noll could make interviews feel like an afternoon root canal gone bad.

Not everything was peaches and cream for Ryan, however. He also writes about the many African safari adventures he had with his late wife Lee, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease shortly after one such trip. While his wife was suffering from the disease, Ryan dove deep into charity work to help raise money and awareness, and one can tell these endeavours were and are very important to him and his family. He also mentions two boxing deaths he was witness to during his long announcing career at ringside. Ryan was also broadcasting the infamous game between Minnesota and Oakland in which North Star Bill Masterton struck his head on the ice, causing him to slip into a coma and die just days later. Through it all, Ryan has persevered, found love a second time with current wife Patricia, with whom he has shared many wonderful adventures, including living in Switzerland for several years, and he has broadcasted more than his fair share of huge sporting events, including the Olympic Games.

All in all, if one is interested in a career in broadcasting, this book will definitely entertain you, and make you want to pursue that dream even more. The book is heavy on anecdotes and stories, and it is a quick read. There is a lot of name-dropping too, so if you’re like me, and you know absolutely nothing about Olympic downhill skiing or boxing, you may find yourself a bit lost at times, but the chapters are short and easy to digest, making you want to always read just one more before heading off to bed. I recommend the book to anyone who is looking to make a career in broadcasting, and who has an interest in the behind-the-scenes aspects of athletics and sports broadcasting.